After a 31-year stint on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the production Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its elaborate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and unimpressed critics who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Now, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
A King of Sequins
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more enticing for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a theatrical, more spectacular, breathtaking, entrance-making statement.”
The Mainstream Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across concert platforms in sequins, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, highlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist a fashion expert told a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant feathered fans.
Drawing from History
Modern stars and other hitmakers also take inspiration from historical performances, including vaudeville and dance line references. The outcome are worlds away from the 1990s era pop style of revealing tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are convinced with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a see-through sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.
“Showgirls bring about fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who documents the story of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the shine but without the exposure.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of the City
The expert says showgirls are key to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, showing up at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Las Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.
The Appeal of Escape
The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This idea Taylor Swift references in a latest docuseries that captures the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, training and numerous concerts across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.
She describes her own showgirl performances as “comparable to running a marathon in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could rest before I made my entrance. You are working hard the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s simple and beautiful and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. Who better to turn to than these performers, who have always embodied fantasy, idealism and a realm where no one misses a mark.
